Although Illinois Basketball has been dealing with injuries throughout the past few weeks, they remain one of the best teams in the nation. Currently ranked No. 3 overall, the Illini scored 112+ points in blowout wins over Penn and Fairleigh Dickinson to move to 2-0 on the season.
But the schedule gets harder going forward, starting with a matchup against No. 16 Texas Tech on the road. What do the Illini need to do to get the massive road win on Tuesday night? Here’s a look at three keys to watch.
1. Impact of the freshmen pieces
The key freshmen newcomer everyone knew coming into the season was Quentin Coleman (16 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 4.0 apg), who has been as good as advertised. But thanks to injuries, the Illini and other first-year players also had an impact.
- Zavier Zens (15 ppg)
- Ethan Brown (12.5 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 6.0 apg)
- Lucas Morillo (6.5 ppg and 5.5 rpg)
- Lincoln Williams (12 ppg and 9.0 rpg)
Yes, these were against inferior opponents so they won’t all play much against Texas Tech. But while still underhanded, it’s still good to get unexpected production from the young guys, especially against a ranked opponent.
2. Good games from the Ivisic brothers
With star forward David Mirkovic still out with a foot injury, Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic will become the featured frontcourt pieces. They haven’t been needed yet, putting up 11 ppg combined to this point. But they’ll be needed against Texas Tech’s frontcourt, even while their own star big man (JT Toppin) is out as well.
3. Defending Donovan Atwell’s 3-point barrage
As the top scoring unit in the country, few teams will be able to keep up with the Illini. But Texas Tech has a chance to withstand a shootout, especially if the three-ball goes down. Eligible senior wing Atwell was one of the best shooters in the country last season, shooting 46% from deep on a whopping 8.4 attempts a game. He’s off to a slow start (3/16 from deep) but is capable of going off, starting on Tuesday night. Illinois just needs to prevent him from going off to feel good about winning the game.
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